Misc

This weekend my parents came to visit.  And yes, my dad fixed stuff in my home.  (I've mentioned that I'm not particularly handy in past postings)  My dining room light was flickering and magically fixed itself when they were here.  Really, it's been doing strange things for a few weeks and it stopped on it's own.  Then I had new shelves installed in my guest room closet. 

You would have laughed if you saw me in Home Depot, calling my dad and asking what other supplies he may need for the project.  I have to admit that I finally learned what a hacksaw looks like.  I know what a saw is, so you can't tease me about that.  Come on, I'm not that bad.  I just didn't know what made something a "hacksaw" instead of any old run of the mill saw.

I'm pretty happy with the way things are set up now.  I just need to purge some of my books...it's so hard for me to downsize my book collection.

Last Thursday was Tapas' (my friend, Richard's little Chihuahua) first birthday.  We went over to Mel & Richard's for dinner and they even baked him a doggie cake.  Of course, I had to take pictures.

Last Thursday, I did another podcast, but this time there were actually more women than men.  Consequently, we called it Confemme (instead of Confab).  The talk is split into two parts.  The first part is released today and the second will be released next Monday.  We focused on plastic surgery based reality TV shows, women struggling with how their appearance affects their careers, and how technology is changing our social interactions.

Here's the link, www.confabshow.com.  Enjoy!

Every once in a while I feel the need to do a home improvement project.  Actually, it's a pretty rare occurance and today I was reminded why.  There are some things I'm very good at...planning, math, and making spreadsheets dance.  Then there are my underdeveloped skills, such as basic home maintenance projects.  I really shouldn't be allowed to use power tools.  Don't get me wrong, I'm not tackling difficult projects or haphazardly throwing things together.  Today I attempted to install a bike hoist.  It consists of three pulleys, a rope, two anchors to the ceiling, and a cleat to fasten the extra rope.  Really, it should be easy.

Well, I installed the hard part, but I couldn't screw in the cleat to the wall.  Even after reinforcements came, I was left with five new holes in my wall.  I am throwing in the towel.  I have to admit that I have to wait for my dad or friend's husband to save this one.  At least I learned how to use a stud finder and power drill today.

Sunset

Yes, it was 80 degrees here in Seattle.  And because I was so disappointed about last weekend's performance, I had to workout extra hard to redeem myself. Julie was laughing that I felt the need to prove my athleticism.  Here's the week's workout schedule:

Monday: 1 hour of weight training and 3 mile walk

Tuesday: 8 1/2 mile run with Cindy from Greenlake, along Lake Union, across the University Bridge, up the steps to the top of Capitol Hill, through random streets in Wallingford and back to Greenlake.  My legs were screaming at the end of the run, but we were giddy from all the good weather.

Wednesday: 1 hour of weight training and some running along Lake Union and walking up the steps to the top of Queen Anne with Julie.  Again, legs were burning!

Thursday:  Yes, this is what happens when you hang out with someone who it trying to qualify for Boston this year.  Cindy and I did the 6 mile "Hana Hill (or Hell) Route."  That's where we start in downtown Bellevue, go up Clyde Hill, wind around Media and Hunts Point and find extra little hills on the way back.  Just to give you some context, this route was developed by Hana, who did crew in the Olympics and is thus an amazing athlete and has a very high threshold for pain.  We allowed ourselves one short walking break each since it's our first run on our new training plan.  I was actually pleased about how strong we were.  Then Bethany convinced me to walk about 4 miles later that evening since it was such a beautiful day.

Friday: A well deserved rest day.  I went to the Animal Shelter with Kristen and we had an ice cream cone along the beach in Shilshole.  So many people took Good Friday off.  Then I had almost a couple beers (I just couldn't finish the second one) with my good friend, Gavin, at dinner.  It was a wonderful way to end the week.  I don't know how that fits into my "training," but I still have plenty of time to rest before our 15 mile run tomorrow morning.

I love Spring/Summer.  I love the long days.  I love how everyone is so friendly and in a good mood.  And I love the fun clothes.   It's my favorite season and it's where I hit my peak fitness in training.  I'm really enjoying the work I do, I have wonderful friends, a supportive family network, and I'm in good health.  Yes, I feel blessed.

Mt. Rainer. I was catching it just as the sun was setting.